dan670844

I don't understand you are using a GP12 preamp Series or a GP12 SMX? if its a GP12 SMX turn everything up on your jazz low compress halfway and just a smidge of top compressor (very very small) and preshape 1. If its just a GP12 preamp then I don't understand why you would use this and not the preamp on the Mark King. The preamp on the Mark King some would say its very very similar to a GP12SM

[quote name='Fly2far' post='783806' date='Mar 23 2010, 07:48 PM']Is there a pedal/limiter/compressor/ heavy gauge strings etc. that is giving the "tone" that seems prevalent to this style of playing. I've tried scooping the mids on my 70's Jazz Bass on the guitar and amp (Trace Elliot Pre amp) but I can never seem to get that clean sparkle of the tops and that "sucking" sound. Any advice appreciated.[/quote] Here Is what I do for slap, though Its not my fav why to play bass but needs must to earn a crust and all that Jazz bass Everything up full, on my old jazzes I tend to wind the bridge pickup a bit, use a compressor to compress the lows, dial about halfway up, I do not compress highs at all, cut 400-500hz by a couple of Db, Boost couple of Db around 1-2.6Khz. Boost 100hz - 160Hz by a few Db. Elicit cheesy noob grin job done. Of course this is my sound that I like on my amp. This gives that 'dry' slap clicky sound very 80's.......... yuck You can get that easy if you have a trace elliot smx just use preshape 1 no other eq and put the low compressor dial up halfway and just a smidge of high. Same settings on the compressor but use preshape 2 with a smidge of 100Hz gives a thinner sound... whatever!! For old school slap I normally don't boost the 1-2.6Khz so it doesnt give so much attack. For basses that have buckers I just use the bridge pickup, but don't use them that often. I Don't use active basses, my misses bannned them because I kept taking batteries out of the smoke alarms!

[quote name='walbassist' post='863023' date='Jun 10 2010, 10:37 AM']Hello all The lead singer in my band is a bit of a multi-instrumentalist, and plays the following instruments at most gigs: 2 x Acoustic Guitars, 1 x Resonator and 1 Mandolin, each of which have active preamps in them 1 x Banjo, which has a passive limpet pickup on the skin These all go direct into the PA mixer, so obviously take up a lot of channels (which are at a premium) and are a real fuss to set up given the amount of leads strewn all over the place, and especially the varying gain levels involved, so we were wondering about giving him a mini-mixer to use on stage. So, the question is, can anyone recommend a 5 or 6 channel mixer that has 1/4" jack inputs and, ideally, mute buttons for each channel? We're not looking to spend huge money on this, maybe £150ish, but any advice would be most welcome. Cheers Gareth[/quote] Those little behringers are pretty good, but check out the soundcraft mixers, they are much better made with a metal chassis and the preamps are a million times better, for a few more beans you get a much better sound Dan

[quote name='dan670844' post='867059' date='Jun 14 2010, 02:35 PM']Stop worrying they will be fine! the CV pickups are good, but Wizzards are top notch and comparable to the Fender Custom shops which I used to use but they have higher clarity and are less fizzy if you know what I mean. Fit em enjoy, for pick playing they really are top notch, I cannot think of any other pickups which I would recc over these. Most other pickups available today are machine wound, scatterwounds in this instance means they are handwound. Handwound pickups due to the random windings will for some reason pickup more from the strings have better clarity, depth and dynamics. The original fender pickups were scatterwound and we all know how good they are. Its the same with transformers, if you want a top notch transformer, they are still handwound. I have to say the differences are really not something you will hear unless you a listening on headphones, but you will feel it your guitar will feel a lot more responsive.[/quote] Sorry another thing the differences you hear in your current pup is probably that they are not a matched set. Wizzo and Fender CS and for that matter all the more expensive pickups are. But the problem you have there is easy sorted in the meantime. Just lower your neck pup a bit and/or raise you bridge to balance. On Jazzers the Neck pickup will always feel louder, because the string has more energy at this pickup position.

[quote name='dave_bass5' post='866994' date='Jun 14 2010, 01:27 PM']Thanks shambo. As im replacing squier pups im hoping the Wizards will be a bigger improvement. I do like the idea of more detail in the highs but im sure it will be there. I gues si can always mix and match. Im finding the bridge pup to be a bit lacking bite and volume and the neck pup to be quite full and round. Maybe i could just add one 84 at the back if i don't like the overal tone with both in.[/quote] Stop worrying they will be fine! the CV pickups are good, but Wizzards are top notch and comparable to the Fender Custom shops which I used to use but they have higher clarity and are less fizzy if you know what I mean. Fit em enjoy, for pick playing they really are top notch, I cannot think of any other pickups which I would recc over these. Most other pickups available today are machine wound, scatterwounds in this instance means they are handwound. Handwound pickups due to the random windings will for some reason pickup more from the strings have better clarity, depth and dynamics. The original fender pickups were scatterwound and we all know how good they are. Its the same with transformers, if you want a top notch transformer, they are still handwound. I have to say the differences are really not something you will hear unless you a listening on headphones, but you will feel it your guitar will feel a lot more responsive.

[quote name='dave_bass5' post='866772' date='Jun 14 2010, 09:56 AM']Im all set to order a set of Wizards for my CV Jazz. Ive had emails from Andy and based on what im asking for, he has recommended the 84's. I tend to agree with him but im just wondering if anyone has any comments to make about the difference in these two pups. Are the 64's brighter but at the expense of less punch? I like the idea of more low end but dont want to get too muddy. Im playing mainstream covers, and my cab has loads of mid punch already so i would prefer a smoother tone, but also as close to a P as i can get (i know i wont get too close). Cheers.[/quote] I use 64's and 84's in my Jazzes. Both pickups are very evenly balanced across the strings. The 64's are like classic Jazz pickups. The 84's the lows are more evenly represented and are very even, but they do loose some top end clank, and attack, which is most circumstances is an advantage! the 84's also have a higher output, which is also an advantage to get good loading on modern preamps Both pickup sets are Scatterwound, you will notice the difference in clarity over most ther pickups out there, muddy they def ain't. They 84's pack a hefty punch, with great definition. From what you are saying I would agree with Andy, as I guess playing with a pick you get enough attack and In most instances you are probably cutting your 1-2.6 Khz a bit to reduce this. All in all these are pretty amazing pickups and for £70 pretty unbelievable.

[quote name='Mr. Foxen' post='866575' date='Jun 13 2010, 11:01 PM']Aren't really any 15s that will do 35hz in a bass rigable size (just checked Kappalite 3015LF, even as a sub, Eminence suggest high passing at 35hz). You don't need that low. 50hz is plenty low for most purposes.[/quote] Yes I agree I was really talking about ported cabs and the much maliged frequency response range, and only as a method of 'easy'cab selection. I know from experience certain manufacturers cabs paticularly the 15"s with a low frequency response can handle the lows (45-70Hz) much better. If anyone has ever used a Laney RB115 for example (but there are others by Trace, Carlsbro, Peavey) they will know what I mean. Unless you do something silly they never fart out, but to me they are not giggable they are old school heavy and washing machine big.

[quote name='chrisd24' post='866225' date='Jun 13 2010, 06:06 PM']yes it was the outside jam with the combo when it sounded great![/quote] I still think it could be a porting issue. the whole idea of ports is to help with the lows / make the cab more efficient at the low end. to do this they need air. I used a couple of front ported 2x10's once (they where avatars) all I had to do a gig. On there own they sounded great, stacked they sounded like a tranny radio. There was some crazy air robbing thing going on I guess. My advice would be try one cab on its own and play with the EQ. See what you get at low volumes. I don't know what 10's you have in your cab but most (except high end stuff) can only handle 70Hz at the low end with any sort of efficiency. So if you want the low end beef you need a matched 15" that can handle 35Hz. But don't loose heart if its an old Peavey, Trace Elliot, Carlsbro or Laney. They where pretty amazing and there isn't much these days with that low punch at a reasonable price point, Different days!

[quote name='kenthebass' post='866431' date='Jun 13 2010, 09:08 PM']hi everyone, i got a trace elliot [b]GP12 SMX 4x10 combo[/b].. i did a gig and it just cut out half way through the night, it stays lit up though.. next day it seemed fine. the next time i used it, it did the same thing.. i turned it off and on again and it made a screaming noise. next day it seemed fine.. so it seems to stop working after so long.. maybe half an hour. the fan is working so i don't think its over-heating. i've had a look inside and there's nothing obvious wrong, the valve is lit and it's pretty new anyway so i know its not a valve problem. can anyone suggest what this could be, has anyone had this problem with their rig.. thanks, ken[/quote] Yep sounds like the valve, get a Harma retro cryo in there, they sound very nice, and yes i couldn't believe the valve has such an effect on play in a solid state amp even if you aren't using it.

[quote name='waynepunkdude' post='865593' date='Jun 12 2010, 10:42 PM']Right most of us have a bass that is 'ours' no matter what happens that is the bass you'll always keep, post a pic of it here. ONLY ONE BASS PER PERSON For me it's my Jazz [/quote] This is my bass it gets played every day, many gigs recordings, its just right, very light alder body, very fast neck, clear as a bell pickups. I have a lot of basses, mostly jazzes, but I don't play them very much anymore.................. Its a 1986 Fender Jazz Made In Japan. Its a 62 reissue, with the Atlansia neck, massive curved slab of Brasilian Rosewood (a bit naughty as its a bit of rainforest) Hand wound pickups, best bass I have ever played. I won't change upgrade any part and yes I will be buried with it!! It looks new in these pics but its got so many dings in it! I bought it in 1995 for £400 everyone thought I was mad. But the guy I bought it from knew what he was selling!

[quote name='Count Bassie' post='865348' date='Jun 12 2010, 05:03 PM']I agree- same thing happens in everything it seems. I don't recall the thread- not because ther are so many, but I've been sort of living a pretty nutty schedule the last few weeks I mean 12 years (got young'uns, wierd work schedules, psychotic or personally-disordered band-mates, 'friends', etc)! But I'll say this much anyway, and I think it applies: Science- on paper- and the reality of chaos... they're often pretty irreconcilable! I stay away from math- I think that your ears, which hear in a subjective manner, don't pay attention to numbers. That's why we have terms like "throw" and "bloom". It's what seems to happen, so you might as well go ahead and speak in those terms. It's our reality. Knowing stuff is empowering, but you don't want to let that get in your way, if you get me. Dude I really appreciate the info you threw down. Thanks again. Witterth, I've been told over the phone by my tech that the UV light issue is probably not the ballast, but a simple grounding problem. I'm looking forward to bringing the thing into his shop, I think he'll be pretty gassed to see this old box, and note the 'vintage' of it.[/quote] No worries man anytime, if you ever get stuck for parts for Trace gear give me a PM. There's repair company over here called Electro music services, run by too crazy old dudes and a couple of dogs! they have rooms full of boxes and boxes of old parts. They can normally get anything, if they can find it!

[quote name='StevieD_FenderP2009' post='865306' date='Jun 12 2010, 04:04 PM']Hey Dan, The Mark King 500 model is available as a Rack Mount head just so you know Thanks for the advise, I am definately going to try one of these out now No doubt about it. So much good feedback about them[/quote] Edmouk is selling one on here it looks mint want 570euro for it looks mint. Selling it cause its too loud he he. Check out the picks esp on the back that meaty power supply is almost poking out the back!

[quote name='Count Bassie' post='865311' date='Jun 12 2010, 04:10 PM']Wow, thanks for the nice info there Dan! I do now recall seeing the "Soundwave" label inside the chassis/sleeve, when I took the UV light assembly off to clean it up a bit, do a little snooping. I do think I'll have my local amp tech have a look-see into it, maybe he can fix 'er up. He's done work on other Trace stuff for me and always did a nice job. In fact (quick derail here) yesterday I picked up my AH250SMX from him, and learned that the FX loop isn't an insert-type, but works more like an Aux Send: The fx signal is mixed with the preamp signal at the fx loop Send jack, rather than the preamp signal sending itself into the effect. The amount of effect mixed into the preamp (dry) signal is determined by the [b]Send Level[/b] knob on the back panel. Pretty interesting. Also, the Effects Volume knob on the front (of the 250SMX anyway) does pretty much nothing. You just leave it dimed. Okay, cool stuff to know. And no wonder the amp seems to work without any glitches at all (except for the light). Many thanks for all the info and interest. Trace Elliot seem to have made lots of unpublished, minor adjustments to their gear over the years, almost as if the shole compnay was sort of a big, marketed experiment. That's not a bad thing, just saying that I've noticed quite a few 'odball' details from edition to edition, even within the same model name/number. What's the back panel look like? Same as mine there?[/quote] I think the Mark IV and V are pretty boutique, and were made before they made it really big and starting mass producing them. Amps are always the best when the companies are small to medium and the people within have a passion about what they do, it then always turns to s@@T when they start thinking about money! but the reality is maybe they couldn't afford the parts! I think Mark and Dan Gooday at Ashdown have realized this and they are pulling back and starting to make stuff in house again. Their new valve ended / driven stuff is top. What do think about that noob on the other thread by the way? ......... Dave College! he hasn't realized yet that the laws of physics etc doesn't apply in bars......... its a parallel universe!

[quote name='Starless' post='864713' date='Jun 11 2010, 09:28 PM']Interesting, why would you suggest that?[/quote] You didn't mention if it was a US or Japanese Jazz. I have made many swaps between old US and Japanese without probs they fit like a glove, not sure about the new US ones though never tried. Mexi stuff no way Jose they don't fit. I would do this it will probably cost you nothing if you sell the precision neck (personally i would keep it) I don't think its to do with technique etc more the way you are built. I have huge hands (i wish the rumours where true hehehe.... ) but the way my fingers are shaped I have found that the old shape jazz C shape profile is the best. believe me I have tried and have made many expensive mistakes, (did I tell you about the Warwick thumb story!) it just the way of things! I would get a luthier to fit it though.

[quote name='dan670844' post='864768' date='Jun 11 2010, 10:36 PM']YOU LUCKY Man!! a nice find that. Mark IV's and V's have less top and less middy than Series 6, SMX you will have to rethink your EQ a little. Series 6 and later have a much more middy basic sound. So you may want to be less harsh with cutting those mids. Maybe even knock them up a little (sad man eq) I have a Mark V, I tend to leave the EQ alone, sometimes just boost the low mids and add a little bit in the 1Khz - 3Khz region. I play a passive Jazz, But note the Eq is really sensitive on these. Mark IV and V are really special amps, they are the original almost handmade Traces, before Clive Button got involved, Series 6 and SMX are more mass produced products, still good though. But these earlier ones are 'lifer' amps as they use really high quality components and ALL the components can be replaced There are no silly impossible to find proprietry electronics in them. I have been using my Mark V a lot recently, I use it with an EBS compressor pedal, with some Nemesis RS cabs (I don't care if they are cheap they sound nice with this amp) With the compressor it really is loud very punchy tight deep bass, very warm sweet.... Enjoy. But a service wouldnt be a bad idea. that buzzing from the UV is the ballast, they do that when they are shot. Cost pennies to sort out.[/quote] Sorry I hate to reiterate, but if you compress the lows (don't compress the highs at all) i.e EBS pedal or if you can find one an SMX trace pedal (which is a compressor / enhancer) you will find one of the best bass guitar sounds going. Also note with these old amps thats 250 rms across the range of 20hz to 5khz. thats a big difference between 250watts RMS at 1Khz ala modern amps. It maybe that you speakers don't like it all that much! the old Mark IV V cab speakers had kevlar reinforcement for a good reason............ careful

[quote name='Count Bassie' post='857918' date='Jun 5 2010, 03:58 AM']Hey folks. I bought an AH250 GP11 a while back, it's a MK IV I'm pretty sure. Compared to an AMP BH-420, and a newer TE AH250SMX head, each played through an old Peavey 215D and then a pair of Bag End S15-D cabs, the MK IV sounds a little darker and more 'contained' than the other two heads. Is this just the inherent quality of the pre in the MK IV, or does it sound like the amp needs a servicing? The UV light makes noise when turned on as well, so it needs help anyway- just wondering if this sound issue is a maintenance thing. Thanks for your time.[/quote] YOU LUCKY Man!! a nice find that. Mark IV's and V's have less top and less middy than Series 6, SMX you will have to rethink your EQ a little. Series 6 and later have a much more middy basic sound. So you may want to be less harsh with cutting those mids. Maybe even knock them up a little (sad man eq) I have a Mark V, I tend to leave the EQ alone, sometimes just boost the low mids and add a little bit in the 1Khz - 3Khz region. I play a passive Jazz, But note the Eq is really sensitive on these. Mark IV and V are really special amps, they are the original almost handmade Traces, before Clive Button got involved, Series 6 and SMX are more mass produced products, still good though. But these earlier ones are 'lifer' amps as they use really high quality components and ALL the components can be replaced There are no silly impossible to find proprietry electronics in them. I have been using my Mark V a lot recently, I use it with an EBS compressor pedal, with some Nemesis RS cabs (I don't care if they are cheap they sound nice with this amp) With the compressor it really is loud very punchy tight deep bass, very warm sweet.... Enjoy. But a service wouldnt be a bad idea. that buzzing from the UV is the ballast, they do that when they are shot. Cost pennies to sort out.

[quote name='TomKent' post='843143' date='May 20 2010, 02:08 PM']I'm currently looking onto ordering a bass (new), a fretless jazz (75 re-issue). A tutor of mine reccomended buying it directly from the Ishibashi factory (or something around that name) as depending on the exchange rate you could get it brand new from as little as £350 including delivery. However, I can't track down any info the the factory but google suggests it does actually exist somewhere. Has anyone on here bought new directly from them? How did you go about it? Any help would be brilliant! TK Edit; I have found this ([url="http://cgi.ebay.com/FENDER-JAPAN-1962-Fretless-Jazzbass-JB62-77FL-326486801-/280507331381?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Guitar&hash=item414f8a3335#shId"]ebay[/url]), but it's second hand. Though it will only cost £500ish.[/quote] you could try here www.guitaremporium.co.uk Regarding Japanese basses I wouldn't say the modern (new) are better quality (I say that as I only play Japanese Fender jazzes!) but what I will say is they are all of a very consistent high quality and don't tend to vary that much and they are always superbly set up. The American ones most of em are excellent, but sometimes i have played one that have a few quality issues, high frets, etc this is only a recent thing (in the last couple of years, I make a point of playing every jazz i come across in shops dealers etc) and there is no excuse for this in a £7-800 pound bass. If I where you I would have a look around on here if you want to spend that much money and see if you can pick up a nice jazz. Whether its Jap, American (lucky) or Mexican, its not important as all the guys on here a a) nice blokes either pro or semi pro players c) just love talking about basses. So you will a) won't get ripped well cared for and well set up, it will play like butter! c) the after sales support advice will be amazing! you won't get that from a shop!

[quote name='dan670844' post='864669' date='Jun 11 2010, 08:29 PM']Compression the easy way get an EBS or even better if you can find an old Trace Elliot SMX pedal they are the dogs. The SMX pedal is a compressor and enhancer, I.e it brings up the volume of the quiet bits ( not a lot of people know that! ) Turn the lows up halfway don't compress any highs you will loose any attack you have. They are not studio quality by a long shot,but they do the job for bass exactly in the spot. It will certain help a great deal. Just pay attention to your input gain to make sure you aren't overloading the preamp. Alternatively see if you can get hold of an SMX preamp. I still have not found anything better to control my fretless sound. Well there is the SWR Marcus Miller preamp is very good, but at £1800 it F****** should be!! but its way to fiddly. SMX button press, low compress halfway, gain adjust done Mwah!![/quote] Another thing you could consider putting one of those cheapo valve preamps in line (Art mic pre valve £35 quid) from Gak to act as a buffer and provide a bit of natural valve compression . They sound really nice if you take the cheapo valve out Chinese muck (it will die in about three months anyway)and either put in a cryoed Harma retro (classic Mullard ECC833 warm sound) or put in Harma STR cryo which is a remake of a Telefunken 7025 very warm clear as a bell sound. Both of these are low gain valves so won't break up and provide a very warm sound with some gentle musical compression / enhancement. Try them on your fretless to you will love the sound.

[quote name='janmaat' post='855449' date='Jun 2 2010, 09:52 PM']Hello, I'm playing a self-made wash tub bass in a band, which has a piezo pickup and sounds overall quite weired. First of all, it does hardly have any harmonies above 330Hz. Second, it has very little attack AND very little sustain - the plastic bucket just gives a deep "whooomp" that actually reminds me of a tuba. Now it's a bit hard to keep anything going in the quieter songs of the band - more sustain would be great, but I'd also like to emphasize the attack. So I probably need a compressor. That being said, I'd use the same for the very nice fretless Godlyke Deity that I play through the same Minimark amp... Oh the band website is [url="http://lonesomecowboysfromhell.com/"]http://lonesomecowboysfromhell.com/[/url] where we've got some demo tracks up While I have some theoretical understanding of compression, it seems most pedals come with confusing knobs. It would be really great to get one that actually has one saying "ratio" and one "threshold" and maybe another one saying "attack"... rather than "suck" or "enhance"... So when looking at compressor reviews such as [url="http://www.ovnilab.com/"]http://www.ovnilab.com/[/url] makes me feel that I can't see the tree for the wood or how you say... Hence, please give me advise from your experience. Is there anything that would come close to a pro compression, but doesn't cost the world? What do you use or recommend? Appreciated![/quote] Compression the easy way get an EBS or even better if you can find an old Trace Elliot SMX pedal they are the dogs. The SMX pedal is a compressor and enhancer, I.e it brings up the volume of the quiet bits ( not a lot of people know that! ) Turn the lows up halfway don't compress any highs you will loose any attack you have. They are not studio quality by a long shot,but they do the job for bass exactly in the spot. It will certain help a great deal. Just pay attention to your input gain to make sure you aren't overloading the preamp. Alternatively see if you can get hold of an SMX preamp. I still have not found anything better to control my fretless sound. Well there is the SWR Marcus Miller preamp is very good, but at £1800 it F****** should be!! but its way to fiddly. SMX button press, low compress halfway, gain adjust done Mwah!!

[quote name='janmaat' post='855449' date='Jun 2 2010, 09:52 PM']Hello, I'm playing a self-made wash tub bass in a band, which has a piezo pickup and sounds overall quite weired. First of all, it does hardly have any harmonies above 330Hz. Second, it has very little attack AND very little sustain - the plastic bucket just gives a deep "whooomp" that actually reminds me of a tuba. Now it's a bit hard to keep anything going in the quieter songs of the band - more sustain would be great, but I'd also like to emphasize the attack. So I probably need a compressor. That being said, I'd use the same for the very nice fretless Godlyke Deity that I play through the same Minimark amp... Oh the band website is [url="http://lonesomecowboysfromhell.com/"]http://lonesomecowboysfromhell.com/[/url] where we've got some demo tracks up While I have some theoretical understanding of compression, it seems most pedals come with confusing knobs. It would be really great to get one that actually has one saying "ratio" and one "threshold" and maybe another one saying "attack"... rather than "suck" or "enhance"... So when looking at compressor reviews such as [url="http://www.ovnilab.com/"]http://www.ovnilab.com/[/url] makes me feel that I can't see the tree for the wood or how you say... Hence, please give me advise from your experience. Is there anything that would come close to a pro compression, but doesn't cost the world? What do you use or recommend? Appreciated![/quote] Compression the easy way get an EBS or even better if you can find an old Trace Elliot SMX pedal they are the dogs. The SMX pedal is a compressor and enhancer, I.e it brings up the volume of the quiet bits ( not a lot of people know that! ) Turn the lows up halfway don't compress any highs you will loose any attack you have. They are not studio quality by a long shot,but they do the job for bass exactly in the spot. It will certain help a great deal. Just pay attention to your input gain to make sure you aren't overloading the preamp. Alternatively see if you can get hold of an SMX preamp. I still have not found anything better to control my fretless sound. Well there is the SWR Marcus Miller preamp is very good, but at £1800 it F****** should be!! but its way to fiddly. SMX button press, low compress halfway, gain adjust done Mwah!!

[quote name='janmaat' post='855449' date='Jun 2 2010, 09:52 PM']Hello, I'm playing a self-made wash tub bass in a band, which has a piezo pickup and sounds overall quite weired. First of all, it does hardly have any harmonies above 330Hz. Second, it has very little attack AND very little sustain - the plastic bucket just gives a deep "whooomp" that actually reminds me of a tuba. Now it's a bit hard to keep anything going in the quieter songs of the band - more sustain would be great, but I'd also like to emphasize the attack. So I probably need a compressor. That being said, I'd use the same for the very nice fretless Godlyke Deity that I play through the same Minimark amp... Oh the band website is [url="http://lonesomecowboysfromhell.com/"]http://lonesomecowboysfromhell.com/[/url] where we've got some demo tracks up While I have some theoretical understanding of compression, it seems most pedals come with confusing knobs. It would be really great to get one that actually has one saying "ratio" and one "threshold" and maybe another one saying "attack"... rather than "suck" or "enhance"... So when looking at compressor reviews such as [url="http://www.ovnilab.com/"]http://www.ovnilab.com/[/url] makes me feel that I can't see the tree for the wood or how you say... Hence, please give me advise from your experience. Is there anything that would come close to a pro compression, but doesn't cost the world? What do you use or recommend? Appreciated![/quote] Compression the easy way get an EBS or even better if you can find an old Trace Elliot SMX pedal they are the dogs. The SMX pedal is a compressor and enhancer, I.e it brings up the volume of the quiet bits ( not a lot of people know that! ) Turn the lows up halfway don't compress any highs you will loose any attack you have. They are not studio quality by a long shot,but they do the job for bass exactly in the spot. It will certain help a great deal. Just pay attention to your input gain to make sure you aren't overloading the preamp. Alternatively see if you can get hold of an SMX preamp. I still have not found anything better to control my fretless sound. Well there is the SWR Marcus Miller preamp is very good, but at £1800 it F****** should be!! but its way to fiddly. SMX button press, low compress halfway, gain adjust done Mwah!!

[quote name='janmaat' post='855449' date='Jun 2 2010, 09:52 PM']Hello, I'm playing a self-made wash tub bass in a band, which has a piezo pickup and sounds overall quite weired. First of all, it does hardly have any harmonies above 330Hz. Second, it has very little attack AND very little sustain - the plastic bucket just gives a deep "whooomp" that actually reminds me of a tuba. Now it's a bit hard to keep anything going in the quieter songs of the band - more sustain would be great, but I'd also like to emphasize the attack. So I probably need a compressor. That being said, I'd use the same for the very nice fretless Godlyke Deity that I play through the same Minimark amp... Oh the band website is [url="http://lonesomecowboysfromhell.com/"]http://lonesomecowboysfromhell.com/[/url] where we've got some demo tracks up While I have some theoretical understanding of compression, it seems most pedals come with confusing knobs. It would be really great to get one that actually has one saying "ratio" and one "threshold" and maybe another one saying "attack"... rather than "suck" or "enhance"... So when looking at compressor reviews such as [url="http://www.ovnilab.com/"]http://www.ovnilab.com/[/url] makes me feel that I can't see the tree for the wood or how you say... Hence, please give me advise from your experience. Is there anything that would come close to a pro compression, but doesn't cost the world? What do you use or recommend? Appreciated![/quote] Compression the easy way get an EBS or even better if you can find an old Trace Elliot SMX pedal they are the dogs. The SMX pedal is a compressor and enhancer, I.e it brings up the volume of the quiet bits ( not a lot of people know that! ) Turn the lows up halfway don't compress any highs you will loose any attack you have. They are not studio quality by a long shot,but they do the job for bass exactly in the spot. It will certain help a great deal. Just pay attention to your input gain to make sure you aren't overloading the preamp. Alternatively see if you can get hold of an SMX preamp. I still have not found anything better to control my fretless sound. Well there is the SWR Marcus Miller preamp is very good, but at £1800 it F****** should be!! but its way to fiddly. SMX button press, low compress halfway, gain adjust done Mwah!!

[quote name='Johnston' post='864615' date='Jun 11 2010, 07:22 PM']buy a fretless jazz neck and stick it on[/quote] +1 to that, the punters won't notice it and sounds like you have perserverd long enough, necks are a very personal thing. I play a wide variety of basses in my line of work but they all have a jazzish neck profile. I love the sound of the stingray but the necks just not for me. I was sad, until (dumbstruck) I discovered that they make the sterling essentially the same bass with a jazz profile neck!

[quote name='Count Bassie' post='864361' date='Jun 11 2010, 02:31 PM']Pretty good point- location in relation to ears! I was hearing a band once at a bar in Miami (Churchill's Hedeaway, if any of you "blokes" have spent any time in Miami)- Charlie Picket and the MC3. The bass player (Marco Petit, gone now, sorry) was playing his old Precision through an SWR Bassic 350 / Goliath II cab. Loud and clear, it was the most beautiful wooly sound I'd ever heard. The stage was about 4' off the floor and from a sitting position it was coming right at my head and chest. And it was perfect for the band. Wow. The way you percieve sound as a player and from out front are quite different. And... what you dial into your rig on your own and what it sounds like in the band mix-very different. What can come off as 'ugly' solo'd might really be perfect in the band. I'd consider that adding a lot of low-bass boost can bury your band in murk, and takes more power from your amp to produce. Also, the bass guitar isn't really a "fundamental bass" instrument by nature- it's really producing mids and harmonics, mostly. So rather than trying to produce lows, you want to discover what feels and sounds good in the band's mix. And now I'm going off, I'll stop... But, don't spend any more money- spend some time. Here's a link with some basics that seems solid: [url="http://bassguitarrocks.com/bass-amp-eq-for-beginners"]http://bassguitarrocks.com/bass-amp-eq-for-beginners[/url] Here's an interesting eq experience from an electric/upright doubler: [url="http://www.premierguitar.com/Magazine/Issue/2008/Mar/Bass_EQ_Basics.aspx"]http://www.premierguitar.com/Magazine/Issu..._EQ_Basics.aspx[/url][/quote] +1 to this most players try and thicken their sound up as to their ears it don't sound "bassy enough". They cut too much mids out of their sound, try running your amp flat across the board. It will probably sound terrible close up, but out in the crowd it will carry and sound just right. These days I tend to only cut and never boost the eq. The bass produces enough bass on its own to fill a room, its important to have all the freq of your bass evenly represented. If you stuff the amp and speakers with loads of low (overlow hehehe) it will work too hard and your sound won't carry. Your sound is made when it reflects off walls, hard surfaces, people, thats why I love the bass! it literally gets in your skin! The most amazing thing I used to do was for fun go out into the crowd ( i had a wireless system) and walk around the venue while playing. We all did. You get an amazing insite into your sound and how it carries and how it doesnt in certain places its a big eye opener. I found that a middly sound on stage (horrible) sounds uber bassy and cool in the crowd.... sweet. But to make my point about the 2x10's to clarify if you are using front ported ones I think they will interfere with each other and probably cut your lows a bit. something to do with standing waves and wot not if they are rear ported they will be ok. You could try stacking them high ways if you see what I mean or try stacking the cabs so that the ports are furthest away from each other. The problem you see is if you have the ports close to each other the cabs steal each others air they need the air to produce the lows you are after.

[quote name='dan670844' post='864335' date='Jun 11 2010, 02:04 PM']Alright All the suggestions advice is pretty good stuff so far . But what no one has mentioned is where the little 150 watter was at the gig? If it was in a corner of a room, it will make a very big difference to the largeness of the sound. If the amp was on a false floor etc it will also make a big difference. Another point is how high was this combo? if it was off the deck on a solid surface it will also make a big difference. Bass is a funny if you can get your little amp to be in a corner of a room it will sound so much bigger and be much louder. It makes a such a big difference. Another point is the fact that with a big stack the bass power is developed much further out from the amp. It might sound weedy and thin and not very loud/ muddy/ terrible close up but ten foot out plus and you might be popping people's ribs. D[/quote] Sorry another point. 2x 2x10 cabs will probably not give you the depth and breadth you are after, you might find they might cancel each other out a bit due to some kind of phase blah bah (speak to Alex Claber about this. he can explain it better than me). It would be better to stick to a tried and trusted formula i.e. 2x10 and 1x15, 4x10, 1x15 etc 2x15.